Something that the Lord has been teaching me over the last few months is about the root of comparison and how walking in it is taking away from Him and focusing on ourselves. Here is a little bit of what He has shown me…
Comparison. What is it and why does it seem to pop up everywhere?
The answer to these two questions are quite simple.
Comparison is seeing things in others that we desire in ourselves and it is a product of the enemy and his lies.
During the last 8 months I had heard a lot about people dealing with comparison and the truth is, the grass always seems greener on the other side, but we when fall into the pit of comparison we are stepping across a line into the enemy’s territory and that grass is fiery red.
Comparison is not just a World Race issue, it’s a world problem. It controls our world, but we usually only hear about it in terms of body image. Girls grow up trying to fit the Victoria Secret model but the desire to be someone or something else doesn’t just happen with our bodies. It happens when we see people or things that look better than what we already have; whether that is clothes, salary, or ministry location. Comparison happens when we begin to think that we know exactly what is best for us and so we begin to take steps to gain the desirable. It is our own selfish aspiration to be or to have something that we see as necessary.
On the World Race we are quick to compare our ministry locations or the spiritual growth of a teammate. In the real world, single girls get bitter over engagements and marriages and those in the business world spend their days competing for a higher salary and a better office space. For college students comparison can be dangerous as they search for an identity only to find the bottom of a bottle trying to be “the cool kid”.
Comparison also allows us to sit in place where we focus on our flaws instead of drawing on the beauty of our creation. It can bring on unneeded anxiety, depression, and thoughts of self hatred. It is dangerous and unhealthy. Unfortunately, comparison IS EVERYWHERE and it can be hard to escape.
Who is the best. Who looks the best. Who can run the fastest. And the list goes on.
We will never be able to live up to the idols that the world has put in front of us.
We will always want something more, which leads us to this:
Idolatry and Pride
The two driving forces in comparison.
Comparison is the selfish ambition to devalue creation and pursue something that God did not intend for us.
We are, by nature, a prideful race. We strive to be the best and we see ourselves as deserving of the best. We easily forget that we are sinners and deserve NOTHING! We are given more than we could ever deserve: grace, mercy, love, restoration, redemption, hope, and on and on and on. Everything that we ‘earn’ in this life is really only a gift from a loving Father. He chooses to bless us, even though we don’t deserve it.
We have got to step putting things in places that they don’t belong. We shouldn’t be living for awards and bonuses and beautiful beach bodies. We should be living a life that is pleasing to God and brings glory to Him, NOT US!
We should be living to worship the Creator, not the creation.
“For you formed my inward parts, you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.” –Psalm 139:13
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” –Jeremiah 1:5
“The Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” –Genesis 2:7
David and Jeremiah were reminded of the simple, yet complex, act that took place during the creation of man. We were all created equal, but we were created to be individuals with a unique makeup that only the Creator of the world could come up with. Why do we spend our lives trying to change that?!?
We were created beautiful and our creator delights in us. That should be enough for us to stop comparing ourselves to those around us. Sadly, it isn’t always enough, but how cool would it be if we all walked life together, just striving to live as God created us, and our growth and change happened as we became more like Jesus.
He is what we should be striving for!
We wouldn’t selfishly desire to be skinnier so that we could wear a smaller size, but we would strive to live a healthy life that treats our body as a temple. We wouldn’t work jobs that we hate just because they pay well, but we would work in jobs that please God, knowing that He will always provide enough. We wouldn’t desire Bible knowledge to be better than the girl in small group who always knows that right answer; instead we would desire Bible knowledge to know and understand our Creator and Savior more.
When we allow comparison to drive our everyday life we are pushing the will of God to the side and living for our own will and our own desires. Idolatry and pride can completely shatter our relationship with God, because it allows us to focus on and admire things that aren’t of the Lord.
My prayer for everyone is that they would give up the idol of desire and they would stop walking in comparison. I pray that we would walk as the daughters/sons that we were created to be. As children of God we are different and we should strive to look like Christ, not like our neighbor, or the celebrity on TV.
I pray that you confidently walk today as His children and allow that to combat the lies of the world.
with love,
samantha lillian
